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Kariobangi
Commercial and residential suburb in Nairobi, Kenya

Kariobangi

Kariobangi is a low-income residential estate in northeastern Nairobi.

Plan a trip to Kariobangi→From Eldoret

It consists of both apartments and slum-type dwellings. The name Kariobangi is believed to have come from an English phrase "Carry your bags" that was used by a white settler during the colonial period, that African natives mispronounced. It is split into two parts, Kariobangi North and Kariobangi South. The northern part was constructed first, with first buildings built in 1961. Kariobangi North is part of the Embakasi North electoral constituency. Kariobangi South is in the Embakasi West constituency. Kariobangi falls under two Nairobi sub-counties: with the north in Kasarani and the south in Njiru.

How locals move

Getting around Kariobangi the local way

  • Get inMatatus (11- to 18-seater minibuses) and shuttles (6-seater cars) are convenient, inexpensive (and often the only) modes of public transport for connecting Nairobi with towns and tourist destinations in the Rift Valley and Central Highlands such as Naivasha, Nyeri, Nanyuki, Isiolo, and Thika.
  • Get inMatatus can be obtained from the River Road area.
  • Get inExtreme caution should be exercised in this area because petty theft is a major concern; avoid showing valuables such as mobile phones, even while in the matatu (see safety section below).
  • Get inThe best method of connecting to a matatu is to arrange for a taxi to drop you off and pick you up directly at the location of the matatu that you are boarding or alighting from.
  • Get inIf you're boarding a matatu from Nairobi, tell the taxi driver your destination and they will drop you off at the correct location.
  • Get inIf you are being picked up, then tell the taxi driver the location you're coming from as well as the matatu company that you are using (your ticket should have the operator's name).
  • Get aroundThe driver and fuel are charged separately with some companies requiring that you hire a driver if you are taking a large 4X4/4WD (e.g.
  • Get aroundHere are some reliable car hire companies in Kenya: Nairobi Car Hire offer good services for 4x4 and other categories of cars.

From Wikivoyage: Nairobi, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Maulid makokha (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.